Syracuse, N.Y. — Mike Hopkins has been an assistant coach at Syracuse University since 1995. He is the acknowledged heir to Jim Boeheim's head coaching seat whenever Boeheim decides to retire.

But in recent years, Hopkins' name has surfaced more and more in conjunction with head coaching opportunities at other schools. Last year, Hopkins was one of the two final candidates for the University of Southern California job. USC wound up going with former Florida Gulf Coast coach Andy Enfield.

On the surface, it makes sense that Hopkins would be connected with both of those jobs. Boston College is a former Big East school that currently plays in the ACC. Hopkins knows both leagues well. He also has a vast amount of experience recruiting in BC's geographical footprint.

Marquette remains a part of the Big East. Although the school is located in the Midwest, Marquette has a strong East Coast history dating back to the days of Al McGuire.
Here is a look at the pros and cons of both the Marquette and Boston College situations and whether Hopkins is really a prime candidate for either position:

MARQUETTE

The opening: The Marquette head coaching job is open because Buzz Williams left for a fresh start at Virginia Tech. Williams had led Marquette to the NCAA tournament in each of his first five years as head coach, but the Golden Eagles went 17-15 this past season and did not participate in post-season play.

The pros: It's been proven that you can be successful at Marquette. Buzz Williams had a pretty good run with five NCAA appearances in six years. Before Williams, Tom Crean took Marquette to the 2003 Final Four.

Even though the Big East underwent some major changes over the past few years, the conference still has a solid reputation. The Big East affiliation would help Hopkins recruit East Coast kids to play in Milwaukee.

Financially, the Marquette job is a desirable one, too. Marquette was paying Williams $2.8 million per year.

The cons: Williams' departure to Virginia Tech raises a number of red flags. He left a successful program at Marquette for a place like Virginia Tech where the Hokies have been to one NCAA tournament in the last 11 years? Williams actually took a pay-cut to go to Virginia Tech.

Despite this past season, Marquette has been in the upper-half of the Big East for the past six years. Virginia Tech has been a bottom-feeder in the ACC.

So why did Williams leave? There are rumblings that he was unhappy with the school's administration. Marquette currently has an interim president and an interim athletic director.

Most coaches want to be hired by an AD who will be their boss for a long time.

The choice: For now, it looks like Marquette wants to make a splash. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel and ESPN.com have reported that the school has contacted Virginia Commonwealth coach Shaka Smart. Marquette officials have also talked to former UCLA and Pittsburgh coach Ben Howland, according to ESPN.com.

Should a darkhorse candidate get the gig, that person will most likely be Green Bay head coach Brian Wardle, who is a former assistant to Bo Ryan at both UW-Milwaukee and Wisconsin.

BOSTON COLLEGE

The opening: Boston College created its own opening when the school decided not to bring back Steve Donahue, whose teams had gone 54-76 in his four years. It appeared that BC was ready to turn the corner when the Eagles went 16-17 a year ago, but Donahue made the mistake of loading up his non-conference schedule. Boston College never recovered from a 4-9 start to the season.

The pros: Hopkins knows the lay of land both in terms of conference affiliation and in terms of recruiting geography. He has recruited the likes of Michael Carter-Williams, Demetris Nichols, Craig Forth and incoming freshman Kaleb Joseph from BC's recruiting footprint.

Boston College will return its top seven players from last year's team, including Ryan Anderson, Olivier Hanlon and Joe Rahon. Hanlon might enter the NBA, but that's not a certainty at this point.

The cons: Boston College is in the ACC, which can be a good thing, but the BC job is also one of the toughest in the ACC. In a league that includes Duke, North Carolina, Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Virginia and, starting next year, Louisville, it's tough to imagine BC climbing much higher than 7th or 8th in the league. That's the NCAA bubble, which is a place that gets coaches fired.

And that's the best-case scenario.

The choice: BC officials don't have to look far for a prime choice to fill the position. Tommy Amaker has led Harvard to three straight NCAA tournaments.

Harvard had never been to the NCAA tournament prior to the current run. In addition, Harvard has won an NCAA tournament game in each of the last two years.

Former Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun has let it be known that he'd be interested in coaching again, perhaps at Boston College. But would BC officials really want to hire the man who swore that he'd never play BC again when the school left the Big East for the ACC? How do you sell that to your fans?

OTHER OPENINGS

In addition to Boston College, there is one other opening in the ACC and that's at Wake Forest. Hopkins' name has not come up with regard to the Wake Forest job. Reportedly, Wake Forest officials would be interested in VCU's Smart. ESPN.com has also linked former Wake Forest assistant Pat Kelsey, who just finished his first year as the head coach at Winthrop, to the job.

There are no Big East openings outside of Marquette, but a former Big East school does have an opening. South Florida, which is now in the American Athletic Conference, just fired Stan Heath. Two years ago, Heath led USF to the NCAA tournament. But after a 12-20 season, he's gone. Heath was two years into a six-year extension. Don't expect Hopkins to be involved in this opening.